What is Scrum Master?
The Scrum Master is a role in the Scrum framework responsible for ensuring the team understands and follows Scrum effectively. They act as a facilitator and coach — running ceremonies smoothly, fostering continuous improvement, and serving the team rather than directing it (a "servant leader").
A core part of the job is removing impediments: anything blocking the team's progress, whether a technical dependency, an unclear requirement, or organizational friction. The Scrum Master also shields the team from outside disruptions so it can focus on the sprint commitment.
The Scrum Master is distinct from both the Product Owner (who owns what to build) and a traditional project manager (who directs work and timelines). For PMs, a good Scrum Master is a partner who keeps the delivery process healthy, freeing the PM to focus on strategy, discovery, and priorities.
Examples
- A Scrum Master unblocks the team by escalating a cross-team dependency that stalled a story.
- The Scrum Master facilitates a retro that leads to a concrete process improvement.
Where PMs use this
Related terms
Scrum
A popular Agile framework that organizes work into fixed-length sprints with defined roles, events, and artifacts.
Product Owner
A Scrum role responsible for maximizing product value by owning and prioritizing the backlog.
Retrospective
A recurring team meeting to reflect on the last sprint and identify concrete process improvements.
Sprint
A fixed, short period (typically 1–2 weeks) during which a Scrum team completes a set of committed work.